Shipwreck a controversy magnet - now an exhibition at Aga Khan Museum

Canada’s newest
gallery, the Aga Khan Museum, has
just opened a major exhibition about one of the world’s oldest and most
controversial underwater archaeological finds– the 1,200 year-old Belitung Shipwreck.The exhibition about the ship, The Lost Dhow; A discovery from the Maritime
Silk Route, had its North American launch in Toronto in early December
instead of a planned debut at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC.

Pottery lie on the deck of the wreck of the Dhow. photo -Tilman Walterfang

In 1998, the
shallow waters off Belitung Island in the western Java Seas yielded what has
proven to be the earliest marine archaeological discovery of the century – a
wooden ship filled with gold, silver and bronze objects and a staggering 57,500
Chinese ceramic artifacts. The 15-metre long wooden trading vessel has been
identified as a 1,200-year-old Arab dhow.

Two years ago
the Freer Sacker Gallery(the
Smithsonian’s Museum of Asian Art) withdrew its commitment to bring the
exhibition to the USA because it questioned the manner in which a private
company recovered and sold over 60,000 artifacts from the shallow wreck. It
accused the recovery team of being more treasure hunters than archaeologists.So now Toronto is the only North American
venue to host the show.

“As far as we can recreate the Belitung wreck was
discovered off an island in the west Java Sea by local fishermen diving for sea
cucumbers,” said Alan Chong, the director the Asian Civilization Museum in Singapore,
which now owns the treasures of the Dhow.“A few of these bowls were taken out and sold locally and local
archaeologists working in Indonesia, noticed that these items were being
sold and they (eventually) tracked down the wreck.”

A German firm, Seabed Explorations, then received an excavation license from the
Indonesian government. That company
describes itself as
dedicated to the discovery, excavation, conservation and exhibition of
artifacts that have been lost in shipwrecks to the seas of Southeast Asia.
“Seabed is a commercial enterprise that, in addition to a core team of
specialists, employs distinguished scholars, undersea archeologists and
restoration experts to assist with the care, management and authentication of
finds discovered during our projects.”

Their
artifact recovery was completed in 1999 and the collection sold in a single lot
for $32 million. The entire
findings were then transferred to the Asian Civilizations Museum in
Singapore.That museum, headed up by
former Toronto Art Gallery curator Alan Chong worked with the Aga Khan Museum
to bring the show to Canada before opening its own permanent exhibition of the
treasures back in Singapore soon after the show closes in Toronto on April 26,
2015.

The Smithsonian, once a stronger supporter of the show, “objected to the
display of the Belitung cargo, arguing that commercial involvement in shipwreck
recoveries can compromise scientific standards of excavation and lead to
exploitation of shipwreck sites,” it explained in a press release.

“Others support the exhibition,” continued the Smithsonian, “contending that public–private partnerships can help prevent loss and
dispersal through looting and commercial fishing. Supporters argue that such
partnerships are especially valuable in regions like Southeast Asia where
underwater cultural heritage needs are great but funds and expertise are
scarce”

Recovered pottery on display at the Aga Kan museum -photo George Socka

Seabed
has published extensively about the construction of the 1,200-year-old dhow,
its cargo and the methods used in recovery the find.Company owner Tilman Walterfang freely
contributed photographs and information about the shipwreck to Diver Magazine.

In talking about the Smithsonian’s comments, Mr.
Walterfang bristles at the American accusations of treasure hunting. “We were
fully licensed and enjoyed full support of the government. The problem was that
the government gave us only 2-weeks to recover the entire cargo. When I
explained that it will take years they gave us another six-weeks. That was due
to the volatile situation in Indonesia. (The recovery took place) in the year
in which the 31-year Suharto Regime fell apart and civil war was raging in
various regions of Indonesia. Security couldn't be guaranteed for us and the
artifacts (and looting was also a major concern)”

The
Smithsonian has modified its stand on the original expedition and has recently
called for further scientific research at the wreck site using data from Mr.
Walterfang.Meanwhile The Lost Dhow has
been welcomed to Toronto with open arms. It is the first showpiece exhibition
in a building privately funded by the Aga Khan Trust For Culture and dedicated
to presenting an overview of the artistic, intellectual and scientific
contributions that Muslin civilizations have made to world heritage.

“The show really bridges our understanding
between China, Southeast Asia and the Islamic world. It is really one of the
most interesting tales that can be told,” continued Alan Chong. “ We don’t why
the dhow was there. This is a great puzzlement; some scholars believe that
the ship was dropping off goods in the courts of Java. Other scholars think it
was just blown off course. Or was it taking a circuitous route because of
pirates in the Malacca Straits? Honestly no one has given
a satisfactory answer and no one has any ideas (on how an Arab built ship found its way to
China and into the Java Sea).”

Artifacts on display - Photo by Stephen Weir

The
exhibition looks at the gold, silver, coins and some of the 57.500 Chinese
ceramics brought back to the surface.The items on display are the first hard evidence of a Maritime Silk
Route that saw the exchange of goods, ideas and technologies between The Tang
Dynasty (618-907 AD) in China and the Abbasid Empire (750 – 1258 AD) in Persia.

“ Nearly the entire surviving cargo of
the Arab or Indian ship consisted of Chinese ceramics. Some 60,000 pieces have
been recovered. The breakage level was particularly low, perhaps twenty per
cent, so the original ceramics cargo would have been in the order of 70,000
pieces. The vast majority of the ceramics are in the form of bowls. There are also
many large storage jars, but the additional weight of these is offset by many
tiny jarlets, “ wrote Mr. Walterfang “Many Chinese coins were recovered.”

The
dhow is shown as a small-scale model in a glass cabinet. As well there is an
outline of the 15 metres by 6 metres dhow on the floor, to show the actual size
of the treasure ship.Visitors see
storage pots as they were seen underwater, covered in 1,200 years of muck and
coral and after salvagers had cleaned them up. In Toronto three show stoppers
among the 300 items on display. A priceless gold cup, a green splashed ewer and
a white ware cup stand are must-sees.

Much of the wreck itself was brought out of the water
and will be on display in the new Singapore museum.However, some of the dhow’s hull is still on
the bottom of the Java Sea.The
Smithsonian, in a bit of reversal of its criticism of the Exploration company,
now wants scientists to go back to the site and use Mr. Walterfang’s
information to study the remains of the ship and conduct more excavation of the
site.

The dhow is just one of hundreds of
historically significant ships that have been recovered in the patrimonial
waters of Indonesia.“ There are whole
sections of southwest Asia that have yet to be investigated let alone in
the Indian Ocean. That ocean is of course a much deeper challenge, literally a
deeper challenge, for maritime archaeologists,” said Dr Chong.

SIDEBAR – What is a Dhow?

Model of Dhow - Aga Khan Museum - photo by George Socka

The Dhow is a
traditional one or two masted sailing vessel usually with lateen
rigging (slanting, triangular sails) that has been used for two
millennia in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean.

It was
constructed of wood.Boat builders
steam-shaped wooden hull planks, roughly 2.5 centimeters thick and between 20
and 50 centimeters wide.These planks
were stitched edge to edge with rope. According to the Aga Khan Museum “wadding
was placed under the stitching both inside and outside the hull. A lime-like
sealing compound applied to the exterior waterproofed the hull.”

ALAN CHONG - THE VIDEO

Video talks to Dr Chong about the shipwreck of the 1,200-year-old dhow by Stephen Weir and George Socka for Diver Magazine

DIVER MAGAZINE talked to Dr Alan Chong, the head
of the Asian Civilizations Museum in Singapore about underwater archaeology and
shipwrecks in the Java Sea.Alan Chong
is a former Toronto Art Gallery curator.That interview can be seen in a short YouTube video at:http://youtu.be/jfI5pnTn-1U

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